When does a crime novel become a travel guide ?

My Open University German exam is a thing of the past, though I've picked up my Monday evening class at the Goethe institute again. Anne and I have been back from Rome for over a week now and I note, with genuine shock, that it's almost a month since I last posted. Time for a major effort.

One thing I enjoy almost as much as a holiday is the discovery of a new crime series to savour. Heading for Rome I managed to combine the two. I'd bought "A Season for the Dead" the first in the "Nic Costa" series of police procedurals by David Hewson. The Roman setting appealed to me and I found myself caught up in a thrilling plot to the extent that the 3 hour flight passed me by completely. I finished the novel on our second evening in Rome with a single regret. I hadn't bought the second in the series.

The plot involves a series of gory murders seemingly influenced by the martyrdom of several early saints and overshadowed by politics in the Vatican. For the very first time I found myself learning about a city while reading crime fiction during my visit.

We walked along the bank of the Tiber and I was able to tell Anne a little about the church and hospital on Tiber island (cribbed from the novel, of course). In our visit to San Giovanni's church, St. John Lateran, I was also able to pick out the massive statue of St. Matthew from among the other, equally monumental apostles. He was the one carrying his own skin in a basket. His martyrdom entailed being flayed alive. Anne also pointed out that his name was in foot high letters on the pedestal making me feel, yet again, like her Dr. Watson.

Anyway, Rome was wonderful and we plan on going back next Autumn. In addition I've found a new series to follow. What's even better is that I can claim that the books are educational, the literary equivalent of a tasty, healthy Mediterranean diet.